By Milcah Tanimu
Former Chairman of the Special Investigation Panel for the Recovery of Public Property, Okoi Obono-Obla, has claimed that several individuals who served under President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration should be imprisoned. Despite this assertion, Obono-Obla, a lawyer, emphasized the importance of due process, stating that guilt must be established in a court of law before any such actions are taken.
Obono-Obla’s remarks were in response to former President Obasanjo’s recent statement that many current Nigerian public officials deserve to be incarcerated. While acknowledging the appeal of such statements, Obono-Obla cautioned against making assumptions without proper legal proceedings, stressing that suspicion alone does not constitute guilt.
He questioned whether allegations against these individuals were ever thoroughly investigated or if a prima facie case was established, underscoring the need for legal due diligence before drawing conclusions.
